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Great Plains Conservation’s New Mara Plains Camp, Kenya

Photos by Beverly Joubert Available here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/nmcgakiq1trxbam/JD8gpXIoUY Additional images of Mara Plains Camp: http://wetu.com/iBrochure/en/Information/18480/Mara%20Plains%20Camp/ImageLibrary The Maasai Mara is well know for its astounding wildlife numbers and one of the highest density of lions and cheetah in the world. As of July 10, 2013, it opens a high-end bespoke-designed new Great Plains Conservation camp, the Mara Plains Camp. Great Plains’ Zarafa camp in Botswana has received many best hotel and conservation awards and while the new Mara Plains Camp in Kenya is different, there are many of the same values and signature design of all the Great Plains camps. Kenyan hospitality is taken to a new level at Mara Plains, with expert managers and master chefs who are internationally trained.

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The CEO of Great Plains, Dereck Joubert, a National Geographic filmmaker and explorer who designed – with his wife Beverly – Zarafa, Selinda and Mara Toto Camps, and is also the designer of Mara Plains. Limited to seven tents and settled in the trees of a small river, the camp overlooks the plains of the Mara. The stylish new camp will be the camp under stars, because of its design in an isolated area far from the crowds and in a private conservancy bordering the reserve. The new Mara Plains Camp is more than a safari camp. It has been designed and built as a home away from home with the comforts you might expect of a luxury expedition: space and variety to make you want to spend a week or two at camp. Wildlife wanders through freely and the magic of authenticity in the Maasai culture is reflected in the colorful décor of the camp. “A camp’s success is in the details,” says Dereck. “I spent two full days pacing the approach from where vehicles might arrive, then waded across the river in a direct line that the bridge now takes, through the thick riverine, imagining the arrival, the emotions of people who have just flown across the world to get there. The main tent area, framed by two massive railway wood sleepers or ties, has wide-open entrances on both sides with a view of the Maasai Mara plains. That part was easy but what took me days to figure out was what you will see on arrival, and with some small adjustments. Now, as you walk up the small slope, to the giant steps, you see the horizon with one single flat-topped tree, one of the most quintessential shapes of East Africa, right through the tent. As a boy, a son of a surveyor, direction and a physical and spiritual compass was important to me. A lone tree on the horizon grounds the lines that dissect the camp, and very few will notice it, but hopefully everyone will feel somehow strangely at peace here.” Besides being a beautiful shape and design, beyond the million or so wildebeest or lions and leopards calling all night, Mara Plains Camp is also one of the greenest ever built. Fully solar powered, the camp has 100-year-old wooden floors recycled from railways across Africa. “I think that our camps should have stories of Africa embedded in them. East Africa has a history of railway lines; some have resulted in famous stories of the man-eating lions of Tsavo. Touches of history and storytelling bring a camp alive with legend, myth and romanticism.”

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Photo by Beverly Joubert Mara Plains pays homage to the ancient Swahili culture; old doors from the coastal town of Lamu are placed inside the tents as backdrops for the copper and brass showers. The colorful décor of this camp references the great Maasai chiefs and warriors with a nod to Colonial era campaign furniture and giant beaten copper baths. Mara Plains, centered around a single tree, is a place of dreams, romance, style and beauty, where Chef Juma hugs you, Managers Richard Pye and Lorna Buchanan-Jardine charm you, and the pitch black night illuminates stars in a way you have never seen before.

About Great Plains Conservation Great Plains Conservation saves wild tracts of land and endangered species, and generates much needed revenue for local communities, helping them care for their natural and wildlife resources. It specializes in enhancing habitats as well as creating premier class safari experiences for guests who want to understand

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Africa a little better, experience it at a more meaningful level and be exposed to experts in the field. Great Plains Conservation’s projects in Botswana and Kenya focus on providing guests with an exclusive experience through a strong commitment to a low environmental impact, high value safari that is environmentally and financially sustainable to the benefit of communities and conservation. Our efforts at Great Plains Conservation continue to be recognized by leading travel publications and organizations: Great Plains Conservation is a recipient of the World Responsible Tourism Award and featured in leading publications such at Condé Nast Traveler, Town & Country, Robb Report and Travel + Leisure. www.greatplainsconservation.com www.wildlifefilms.co

Great Plains Conservation www.facebook.com/GreatPlainsConservation The Last Lions www.facebook.com/TheLastLions

Instagram http://web.stagram.com/n/beverlyjoubert Follow the Jouberts @dereckbeverly

For more information, contact: Caroline Graham, C4 Global Communications caroline@c4global.com | +1 310.899.2727 | www.c4global.com